


Of Dives and Distances

by starfleetblues



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, I'm having feels sorry, M/M, Swim Team
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-26
Updated: 2013-11-26
Packaged: 2018-01-02 16:48:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1059211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starfleetblues/pseuds/starfleetblues
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He was still irritated and welcomed the excuse to be pissed off with the lean blond- John or whatever. He glanced at the heat sheet behind his bag- Jim. Jim Kirk, that was it. The same Jim Kirk who was in the lane next to him for his best event, and Leonard cursed as he threw his towel down.</p>
<p>Jim took a look at the lineup and there it was- Leonard McCoy. Jim frowned, thinking that he had seen the name before, and flipped the heat sheet over. Of course- this was the same guy who had beaten him at sectionals sophomore year in the 500. And they were swimming right next to each other in the same event today.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Dives and Distances

**Author's Note:**

> What do you mean I'm not having feels because the boys swim season started today and hot damn they have great asses. Definitely not.  
> Or, in which I am Bones for once and the APUSH guy is Jim (Anneliese, I blame you for this).  
> Also, I swear a lot in this one, so if you're sensitive to that sort of thing, I wouldn't recommend reading this.  
> As usual, I own no part of the Star Trek universe, including these characters below.

“Jim, 112, forward dive pike, 2.2.”

The announcer’s voice rang out clearly across the silent pool as the lone diver stood on the end of the board, eyes closed in concentration.  He took one step forward, then another, swinging his arms before dashing to the end and launching himself into the air, folding himself in half before entering the still water perfectly straight, only causing a few ripples.

When he surfaced and pushed his flattened hair back, he could hear the scores- five, six, five and a half. Not bad, but he’d gotten better. His dives were done, though, so he pulled himself out of the pool as his teammates moved the lane lines back to their original positions, and rubbed his towel down his arms first, then his legs before slinging it over his shoulders. It was a decent start to the season, he thought, and from Coach Barnett’s expression, he thought the same.

On the other side of the pool, Leonard McCoy was trying to push the diver out of his mind as he watched his teammates get ready for the first relay, and he remembered that he needed his goggles. As he desperately pulled them out of his bag, he realized that the team was waiting for his first meet speech.

“Okay, guys,” Leonard said nervously, trying to slow his heart. “I know we’re only a few weeks into the season, and I know that CLS is our biggest competition, but I don’t want you guys to think about them.  I want you guys to focus on swimming your best today, and think about what you want to work on for the season. If we do that, we’ll have the best season yet. So, swim hard!”

Even Leonard knew how cheesy that sounded, but he just smiled weakly and put his hand out. “Huntley on three!”

Jim absently pulled his green pants with yellow stripes on as he watched Huntley’s presumable captain lead the cheer, and realized that he hadn’t yet made a team speech or taught any cheers. Of course, it would have helped if Spock had actually done something other than just stand there as Jim performed captain duties. He cursed internally and tugged a shirt on to wait for his race, pretending to listen to his iPod while he was really watching the other school’s relays and observing their captain stretching behind the blocks. The racer suits really left little to the imagination, and the guy was well cut. He was lane three, so that meant he was the fastest from their team- not hard, Jim caught himself thinking- and Jim wondered what his name was.

The whistle blew once, and silence fell. Again, and the swimmers took two short steps up onto the blocks and poised themselves. Took their marks and froze, flinging themselves off when the buzzer went. Jim found himself cheering internally for the other boy from Huntley as he overtook CLS’s best in the event, and he decided that he should know his name, assuring himself that it was just for competition watching and nothing else. Wandering over to the wall, Jim took a look at the lineup and there it was- Leonard McCoy. Jim frowned, thinking that he had seen the name before, and flipped the heat sheet over. Of course- this was the same guy who had beaten him at sectionals sophomore year in the 500. And they were swimming right next to each other in the same event today.

Jim cursed under his breath and got a dirty look from Spock, which he brushed off and actually started music on his iPod, turning the volume up to almost full and sitting down as his meet playlist began drumming into his head and relaxing his nerves about the race.

Leonard McCoy was upset with his time. Swimming a 2:17.09 meant that he had gained a full two seconds back, and he was currently blaming the diver from the other school for the problem. It was a normal change, he knew, but he was still irritated and welcomed the excuse to be pissed off with the lean blond- John or whatever. He glanced at the heat sheet behind his bag- Jim. Jim Kirk, that was it. The same Jim Kirk who was in the lane next to him for his best event, and Leonard cursed as he threw his towel down.

 

“Take your mark…” Leonard grabbed the block under him and focused on staying still. The buzzer sounded less than a second later, and he was off like a shot, keeping pace with CLS’s captain. Geoff’s hand swung the counter at the end of his lane, and Leonard could tell that the other boy was close on his heels. Determined not to let the blond beat him, Leonard kicked his pace up as high as he dared, and started to gain on Jim. Jim, however, had saved more than Leonard anticipated for the end, and touched less than half a second after. The blond popped his goggles off and extended a hand to Leonard, who begrudgingly released the wall and floated over to shake it.

“Nice race,” Jim said, and he was actually grinning, to Leonard’s surprise.

“You too,” Leonard replied honestly, and his eyes met Jim’s before they released hands and hauled themselves out of the pool.

“Jim Kirk,” he said, and Leonard smiled.

“McCoy. Leonard McCoy. Nice to meet you.”

They returned to their respective teams and Jim tried to hide his smile when he remembered Leonard’s smile and Leonard tried not to think about the startlingly clear shade of blue Jim’s eyes were, uncannily like the deep end of the pool.

 

Leonard went to change before the last event in hopes of avoiding the blond captain until the next invitational, or even conference. When he realized that Jim had the same idea, or something involving changing early as well, he groaned internally and wanted to bang his head on the wall. Hoping Jim wouldn’t notice him, he slipped across the tiled floor soundlessly and managed to make it past the blond before putting his bag down and-

“Hey, Leonard. How’s it going?” Jim was far too cheerful, and Leonard hated it.

“I’m okay, kid. That was a good race,” he admitted, reaching for his towel to hang over his shoulders. “One of the best I’ve ever swam. Felt like I was boneless by the finish.”

“Boneless, huh?” Jim laughed, and Leonard really wished it wasn’t such a clear, beautiful sound that he wanted to hear over and over again. “Alright, Bones, I’ll make it a point to be your best competition for the rest of this season.”

“Bones?”

Jim shrugged. “You need your bones to function in the water, so take it as a reminder to keep them intact.”

Leonard laughed as he pulled his shirt on. “I will, thanks.” His hazel eyes met Jim’s blue again, and he took a step forward. His breath caught as Jim did the same, and again, and the distance was gone and Jim was shoving Leonard against a locker and kissing him like his life depended on it and all Leonard knew was that he wanted the feeling of Jim’s wet stomach against his and Jim’s lips sucking on his for the rest of his life.

Jim had to be the one to pull back first, because Leonard had no room to move against the locker. When he did, Leonard’s eyes were still closed and his hand still rested on Jim’s hip, and they were both smiling again.

Leonard cleared his throat and opened his eyes. “Uh, we should probably… y’know, go back on deck so they don’t think-“

“We’re making out in the locker room?” Jim’s eyes twinkled in the dim light as he finished Leonard’s sentence, and Leonard nodded. Jim just winked and sashayed back to his bag, Leonard watching his ass the whole time.

“Hey, kid, what’s your number?” Leonard called as he pulled his pants on a minute later, and Jim recited eleven numbers that he rapidly typed into his phone.

“You get it?” Jim stuck his head around the row of lockers and startled Leonard, who nodded.

“Got it. I’ll text you sometime.”

“Cool. You ready to go back out?”

Leonard raised an eyebrow. “The two captains of rival teams walking out of a locker room together? That’s not gonna go over well, kid.”

Jim rolled his eyes. “I suppose you’ve got a point. And stop calling me kid, we’re the same age.”

Leonard snorted. “Alright. You head out first and I’ll follow you in a minute. I’ll text you tonight.”

Jim winked before he left, and Leonard knew he was in deep trouble when his teammates found out. Hell, he was in deep trouble now, with the way he kept looking at Jim. Yeah, he was pretty well screwed for the rest of the season. He took a deep breath and slung his duffel bag over his shoulder, making it on deck for the last relay and telling his teammates goodnight.

‘Hey, Jim. Are you busy tomorrow?’ Leonard read his text several times over before sending it, holding his breath that Jim would reply quickly.

‘Is this Bones? I’m presuming it’s you, so no, as of now I don’t have anything other than swim practice. Why?’

‘Yeah, it’s Leonard. Would you be up for going out to dinner?’

‘Sounds good to me. We’re done at 6, how about you?’

‘Same time. Meet at Sam’s at 7? It’s a pasta place, we could carb load for this Saturday.’

‘Sounds good! See you there ;)’

God, Jim was the only high school senior that Leonard knew that would actually end a text with a winky face. Leonard rolled his eyes and stuck his head into his mother’s room.

“Ma, we don’t have plans for tomorrow, right?”

Eleanora shook her head. “No, I don’t have anything planned. Is there something you want to do?”

Leonard hesitated. “Is it alright if I go out to dinner? With part of the swim team? You know, carb loading for Saturday.”

Eleanora waved her hand as she returned her gaze to the computer screen she was trying to decode. “Go have fun, sweetie. I’ll be fine here.”

“Thanks, ma.” Despite Eleanora being from nearby Chicago and very liberal, Leonard wasn’t entirely sure that she would be alright with him going on a date with a boy. Technically, he hadn’t lied about going to dinner with part of the swim team- Jim was a part of a swim team, just not his, and part implied more than one member in this context. Well, what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her, and he’d have to tell her eventually. Besides, he really wasn’t sure if this was going to last, so he might as well wait. It was just one date.

 

Except when Leonard saw Jim walk into the restaurant the next night, a casual half-zip sweater showing his toned arms and dark jeans hugging his ass, Leonard knew it wouldn’t just be one date. Jim’s eyes met Leonard’s across the restaurant, and Leonard waved, smiling as Jim grinned and ran over to the table.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said breathlessly. “You know, captain stuff right before we host our invitational. It’s my least favorite day of the year.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Leonard said as he passed Jim a menu. “I get it. I love the team until the night before our invitational, and then all I want to do is fold them up into the chairs and lock the cart in a closet.”

“Exactly!”

They spent the entire night like that, trading stories about swimming and lamenting about the fact that freshmen are literally the most annoying thing that could ever happen to a swim team. When Leonard looked at his watch and discovered that it was already close to 9, he groaned.

“You should probably get some sleep, kid. I know you have to be there early, and it’s almost 9,” he said, thankful that they had just gotten the check and slipping his debit card inside.

“I don’t want to go,” Jim said honestly, and Leonard laughed.

“Me neither,” he admitted. “I’ll see you tomorrow, though, and maybe this time we can make out in your locker room instead of mine.”

“Is that a promise?” Jim grinned wickedly, and Leonard wondered why, of all seven million people on this planet, he had fallen in love with this idiot.

“I think it might be,” he said coyly, and he felt Jim’s foot nudge his under the table as their server picked up the check. Leonard raised an eyebrow and the game of footsie intensified until Leonard signed the receipt and slid his debit card back into his wallet, leading Jim back outside.

He walked Jim to his car, like a proper gentleman, and was the one to initiate the kiss this time. It was slow and sweet and had Jim wrapping his arms around Leonard’s waist and Leonard’s fingers leaving tracks in Jim’s hair. It wasn’t anything like the last one, which had been so much rougher and more passionate, but it wasn’t necessarily any better or worse. Leonard would say that because it was with Jim both times, they were the most incredible kisses he had ever experienced. When Leonard pulled back, minutes later, he had never been happier and dammit, Jim was worth every heckle he’d get from his teammates and the secret he’d have to keep until he was ready to let them know.

 

As a rule, Leonard was against texting while at a swim meet. It was disrespectful to spend your time typing out a message on a phone rather than spending time with your teammates, he thought. He had his phone with him at all the meets, in case of emergency, but he made a point not to text and only check it once or twice. So when it buzzed after his warm up, he had to convince himself to read the message from Jim.

‘Your ass looks great, btw.’

Leonard turned to look over to where the host team sat, their captain smiling innocently as his eyes met Leonard’s again. ‘You’re absurd.’

‘You love me. Movie after the meet?’

‘Meet me in the locker room after the 200. I’ll tell you then.’

‘Is this where you make good on last night’s promise?’

‘We’ll see.’

It was, indeed when Leonard made good on his promise from last night, slamming Jim back up against a row of lockers and kissing him senseless, until neither of them knew how long it had been or really anything other than the feel of their lips being sucked into a void.

“How far do you think they are?” Jim murmured into Leonard’s lips in between kisses.

“Dunno. We should-” Leonard stopped for a kiss- “probably-” another kiss- “check. But I don’t want to,” he whispered, intertwining his fingers with Jim’s.

“If we miss the event, though, we’re dead,” Jim whispered, and Leonard sighed.

“You’re right. Oh, and about the movie?”

“Hmm?”

“Let’s go. I don’t even know what’s playing, but we can make out at the back of the theater, I suppose.”

Jim cleared his throat, but his voice still cracked. “Sounds like a plan. Good luck in this,” he added as he made his way to the door, and Leonard nodded.

“You too, kid.”

 

Turns out, dating your biggest competitor had a lot of benefits. For example, Jim would tell Leonard about how he stayed on the wall too long and how to best improve his time, and in turn, Leonard would point out how Jim stayed on the blocks just a fraction of a second too long and turned too close to the wall. And, dating someone who had the same training habits meant that picking a place for dinner was never a challenge and Leonard frequently offered an icepack to Jim at the restaurant while another rested on his own shoulder. Plus, the locker rooms were better than you’d think for making out in, and Leonard didn’t regret the loss of his back to bruises and knew Jim didn’t either.

So when his mother finally asked him who it was, a month later, he told her.

“His name’s Jim, ma. Jim Kirk.”

“The same boy who you’ve been swimming against in the 500 for three years now?”

“Um, yeah. That one.” Leonard was surprised she remembered the names of his competitors- hell, he didn’t half the time.

“Well, invite the boy over for pasta sometime soon. I want to actually talk to this boy.”

“Uh, alright. We were going to go out Friday night, but do you want me to invite him over here instead?”

Eleanora beamed. “Friday sounds perfect, dear. Go tell him, and I’ll start dinner.”

 

Eleanora and Jim got along fabulously, and it was later that night that Leonard actually said it.

They were sitting on the floor in Leonard’s room, Jim lying with his head in Leonard’s lap as he told the brunet about where he wanted to go to school and how he was unsure about swimming in college because of the time commitment and the traveling. Leonard was running his hands through Jim’s hair, and absently leaned down to kiss the blond.

“I love you,” he whispered, and Jim lit up like a Christmas tree and scrambled to a sitting position.

“I love you too, Bones,” he said, and pulled his boyfriend in for a deep kiss that was everything they had both wanted to say since Jim had first kissed Leonard in that locker room six weeks ago.

 

Freshman/sophomore conference was in the morning, and Leonard and Jim both planned to be there in support of their respective teams. It was the first time all season that they hadn’t been competing, and Leonard was glad, because Jim was great, but a massive distraction at meets. He was going to appreciate the time he had to spend with just his teammates.

Well, until they cornered him, he was going to. It started when he arrived and found that he was the last one there. Geoff shot him an apologetic look as he approached, and was met by cold stares all around.

“Uh, guys? What’s up?”

“You and Kirk, apparently.” Puri’s voice was cold, and Leonard didn’t think a sophomore could be capable of conveying that much hate in just a few words.

“What?”

“You and Kirk. Is it true? You’re dating our rival team’s captain?”

“How the hell did you find out about this?” Leonard’s voice was perfectly even, but it was cold and hard. “Tell me, how the hell did you hear?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Nelson chipped in, and the rest of the team nodded, except for Geoff. “Just… why? Out of anyone else in the world, why Kirk?”

“Because I love him,” he blurted out, and his team fell silent. “I love our rival team’s captain, and I’m sorry, but I’m not going to apologize for who I care about. I’m your captain, and you’re going to stay the fuck out of my personal life.” His gaze met everyone’s, and he turned on his heel and stalked away, running into Jim as he left.

“Come with me,” he growled, grabbing Jim’s wrist and pulling him into a room off the main lobby before speaking.

“Bones? Bones, babe, are you okay?” Jim was concerned, and he wrapped his arms around Leonard as his boyfriend shook his head.

“Darlin’, they know. My team found out about us, and they’re giving me hell about it.” Leonard was muffled by Jim’s shoulder, but Jim just tightened his grip.

“Bones, it’s okay. I promise, everything is going to be okay. Think of it like this- you’ve got two more weeks, and then you can tell them all to go fuck themselves.”

“I kinda already did,” Bones mumbled, and Jim cackled.

“Are you serious? Bones, you are literally the greatest. What exactly did you say?”

“Told ‘em to stay the fuck out of my personal life and implied that I would castrate them if they mentioned it again.”

“Have I told you I love you lately?”

Bones grinned and reached up to kiss Jim. “Last night.”

“Good. Now, do you want to stay, or do you want to leave with me and go get brunch?”

“If there’s food and you involved, I vote for the latter.”

Jim laughed. “Okay. Meet me at Sunrise in ten?”

“Sounds good.”

 

‘What are you swimming this weekend?’ Leonard was curious as to if he would be swimming against Jim again, and even though it was only Monday, Coach Archer had already told them and he was sure Barnett had told CLS.

Jim replied with a photo of a cast on his hand. Then a message- ‘I’m not anymore. You’ll have to find a new best competitor, sorry.’

‘What the hell happened, kid?’

‘Long story. Can I call or are you busy?’

‘Go ahead.’

When Leonard’s phone lit up with a call moments later, he snatched it up. “Jim?”

“Hey, babe.”

“What the hell did you do, kid?”

Jim laughed. “Had a bad dive. I was doing a back twist and I slipped and my hand slammed into the board. I couldn’t bend it, and they took me to the doctor, and guess who managed to shatter all the bones in their left hand?”

“Only you, kid. You are the only person I know that could do that. Maybe I should call you Bones,” Leonard teased, and Jim laughed again.

“Nah, that’s you. What are you swimming this weekend?”

Leonard shrugged. “The usual. 200 and 500. Are you coming to watch?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there. It’s at PR, right?”

“Yep, PR and we’re scheduled to start at 12. Should we try for another locker room makeout?”

“Sounds good to me, babe. I should go- I’ve got loads of homework to catch up on and sadly, trig won’t do itself.”

“Alright,” Leonard agreed. “I’ve got a lot too. Love you,”

“Love you back,” Jim chirped before he hung up the phone, and Leonard sighed. Only he would fall in love with his best competitor and be a better swimmer for it, and then lose his competition to a shattered hand. He took one look at the mound of homework next to him, and then the clock, and decided that it would be better to just crawl into bed and forget about his problems for the night. Maybe he’d wake up and discover that it was all a dream and Jim would be back in the race.

 

Saturday found Leonard dragging himself to Prairie Ridge High School at 10:30 am for warmups, and hating himself. There was snow on the ground, for Christ’s sake. Who would be dumb enough to do a sport where you spend time in water lower than your body temperature and then walk out into the snow? Apparently, him.

He was the first one from his team there, and he was enjoying the warmth of the pool room while he waited for his teammates to arrive. CLS was already there and getting ready for their first warmup, and his heart broke as he remembered Jim’s injury. He wished that the kid could be there to swim, and he knew Jim felt the same. At least Jim was coming to cheer this time, and in theory, neither of them would storm out after being heckled by their team. Deep breaths, Leonard reminded himself. He had to keep breathing to stay calm, and he focused on a steady, slow rhythm of in, out, in, out.

Geoff was the next one to arrive, and Leonard was relieved that the other senior was there before the underclassmen. “Hey,” Geoff said nervously as he dropped his bag, and Leonard smiled weakly.

“You don’t hate me for dating Jim, do you?”

Geoff shook his head. “No, of course not. I think it’s great that you’ve found someone, and I think it’s good that we’re breaking down the boundaries between our teams. I think the rivalry is absurd.”

“You’re the best, Geoff.” Leonard smiled, and he was glad to know someone like his co-captain. If everyone could be half as good as Geoff, the world would be a much better place.

“Just one question. Is he a good kisser?”

Leonard groaned, but he was smiling. “Honestly? The best. _Way_ better than Jocelyn.”

Geoff laughed, and Leonard found himself again thankful that Geoff was his co-captain and friend.

 

Jim had managed to grab a seat near the door, and he appreciated it when Leonard texted him. ‘About to swim the 500. Meet me in the locker room when I’m done.’

Jim discovered that a Leonard who had just gotten a best time and a third place medal was a great Leonard to make out with, hands roaming more than ever before and furiously crushing Jim’s lips as they backed into a corner.

“Nice race,” Jim gasped between kisses, and Leonard growled.

“Thanks. Now, shut up,” he ordered before attacking Jim’s lips again, and Jim really hoped that Leonard got another best time at sectionals next week at CLC.

When they finally broke apart, it was a full twenty minutes later, and Leonard realized that he was still in his swimsuit, and he blushed as Jim laughed and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Go get dressed, and then we’ll go out to celebrate.”

“Where at?” Leonard asked as he disappeared behind the row of lockers to change, and Jim shrugged before remembering that Leonard couldn’t see him.

“Where do you want to go?”

“Another movie seems like a good option to me,” Leonard mentioned, and Jim grinned.

“Yeah, me too. Oh, by the way, you’re invited for dinner at my house next weekend. My mom wants to meet you.”

Leonard reemerged as he was shifting his bag on his shoulders. “What day? I probably shouldn’t be out past 9 Friday with sectionals, but whenever works is okay for me.”

“How about Saturday? That way I don’t have to worry about you being out too late,” Jim said, and Leonard reached up to kiss his boyfriend again.

“Sounds good, darlin’. Now, how about that movie?”

When Leonard took fourth at Sectionals, it was Jim he found in the group gathered behind the blocks to congratulate the top six. It was Jim who was there to support him, and had even insisted on counting in Geoff’s place. So after he allowed his coach to take one picture in between handshakes, he stepped down and grabbed Jim’s unbroken hand, pulling the blond up onto the block with him again. “You’re the reason I’m up here,” he said, looking into Jim’s eyes, and nearly missed shaking John Catjiore’s hand as the second place finisher walked past. And after Alex Dor’s first place was announced, Jim pulled Leonard in for a kiss up on the blocks, in front of everyone. And Leonard didn’t try to pull away, because he knew this was Jim’s way of proving to the world how much he loved his boyfriend. And when Archer took a photo to be put in Leonard’s senior collage, well, it was to prove how much happier Jim had made Huntley’s captain over the past year.

**Author's Note:**

> If y'all have any questions about this sport now, which is totally understandable, feel free to leave it in a comment or shoot me a message on my Tumblr (jimsbones), and I'll answer to the best of my ability. This sport, though, is a lot like Doctor Who- wibbly wobbly swimmy wimmy, so I make no promises I can help you understand. It's been described as "From the outside looking in, you can't understand it. From the inside looking in, you can't explain it." and that's all you need to know about how much it relates to DW.


End file.
